Chinese Bamboo Pests Identification Expert System

The development history, current situation and trend of agriculture expert system were briefly introduced. The disadvantages of present insect identification expert systems, such as simple function and identification ways, and low efficiency, were also analyzed. Chinese Bamboo Pests Identification Expert System (CBPIES) is developed based on Visual FoxPro, as Bamboos are very important economic trees in China while their pests become more and more serious now on but there is hardly efficient way to control them for the high difficulty of identification. CBPIES is the first bamboo pests identification expert system. It can identify almost 200 insect families related to agriculture and forestry, and more than 450 insect pests in bamboo forests. CBPIES includes five main modules. They are pest information management module, pest inquiring module, identification database management module, pest control tactics module, and assistant module. The database of CBPIES was set up by Visual Foxpro's own database system. CBPIES is very convenient for users to maintain the pest information and knowledge databases, and provides several ways for inquiry and identification, such as accurate inquiry, vague inquiry, speculative inquiry and so on, which will satisfy different users. Advanced users may modify the speculating machine in the system to increase more system functions, which was simply quadratic development. The pest database in the system includes elementary knowledge about insect biology and morphology, as well as control methods of bamboo pests. The system also possesses some assistant functions such as data statistics, printing and Internet help. The system has an interface of new generation of Microsoft Windows and it is quite easy to operate, meanwhile several choices are provided for users to get help. Comparing with other identification expert system CBPIES has some distinct improvements in design of system structure, design of identification and inquiry, knowledge base updating, secondary system development and introduction of background knowledge. So this system would be helpful to the development of expert system in related areas. In a word, CBPIES is a new generation of insect identification expert system with better structure design, stronger overall functions. It will have great importance in the practice of bamboo pest management.